The forsaken Code.

The Awakening Ceremony was the most important event in every young person’s life. At eighteen, they would step forward, touch the Awakening Crystal, and discover the power that would shape their future. Some would awaken elemental abilities—fire, lightning, or ice. Others would gain mental gifts, like telekinesis or mind-reading. Even those with weak abilities had a place in society.

But those who awakened nothing? They were outcasts. Useless. Forgotten.

Noah Carter never thought he’d be one of them.

He stood inside Eastwood Academy’s grand hall, the massive crystal floating before him, humming with energy. Hundreds of students watched as he stepped forward. The headmaster, Professor Caldwell, gave him a nod.

“Noah Carter, place your hand on the crystal.”

Noah swallowed hard and pressed his palm against the cool surface. Energy surged through his arm, tingling at his fingertips. The crystal pulsed, growing brighter…

And then—

It dimmed.

A heavy silence fell over the hall.

Noah frowned. That wasn’t supposed to happen.

Professor Caldwell’s brows knitted together. “Strange… Try again.”

Noah pressed his hand against the crystal once more. He focused, willed something—anything—to appear.

But the crystal remained dull.

Whispers spread through the crowd.

“No way…”

“Is it broken?”

“I’ve never seen this before.”

Then came the laughter.

Kyle Hastings, Eastwood Academy’s strongest student, stepped forward, his smirk widening. “You’ve got to be kidding me. Noah, did you seriously awaken nothing?”

The whispers turned to open mockery.

A lump formed in Noah’s throat. “No… That’s not possible.”

Professor Caldwell sighed, his face unreadable. “The Awakening Crystal does not fail. If it does not react, it means…”

Noah’s chest tightened. “No… There has to be a mistake.”

“There is no mistake,” Caldwell said gently. “I’m sorry, Noah.”

The finality of those words crushed him.

His childhood friend—no, his ex-girlfriend—Sophia stepped forward, shaking her head.

“I can’t believe this,” she muttered. “I really thought you’d awaken something amazing. Guess I was wrong.”

“Sophia, wait—”

But she was already walking away. Straight to Kyle’s side.

Kyle grinned, draping an arm over her shoulder. “Tough luck, Carter. But don’t worry. Some of us were born to be great. Others…” His smirk deepened. “Are born to be nobodies.”

Laughter exploded around them.

Noah clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms. He wanted to scream. He wanted to fight back. But what could he say? What could he do?

Professor Caldwell’s voice cut through the noise. “Noah Carter, since you have not awakened an ability, you will be reassigned to a civilian role.”

A civilian.

The word felt like a death sentence.

Noah turned, his heart hammering in his chest, and walked out of the hall without another word.

That Night

The rooftop of Eastwood Academy was quiet, far removed from the laughter and whispers that still haunted Noah’s mind. He sat at the edge, staring at the city lights below.

Everything he had worked for was gone.

He had dreamed of being a warrior, of fighting alongside the strongest. Now, he was nothing.

The night breeze was cold, but it wasn’t enough to numb the pain in his chest.

Then, suddenly—

A sharp pain stabbed through his skull.

Noah gasped, gripping his head as his vision blurred. A strange pressure built inside him, as if something deep within was waking up.

Then, a voice echoed in his mind.

"You have been chosen."

Noah’s breath hitched. He whipped around, but the rooftop was empty. “Who’s there?”

"Your ability is beyond this world’s understanding. That is why they saw nothing. But you are not powerless."

The words sent chills down his spine.

"You hold the authority to rewrite reality itself."

Noah’s heartbeat pounded in his ears. Rewrite… reality?

The voice continued.

"But power must remain unseen until the time is right. Will you accept this gift?"

Noah hesitated. Was this real? Or was he losing his mind?

But what choice did he have?

He exhaled slowly, his fingers trembling.

“Yes.”

Heat flooded through his veins, unlike anything he had ever felt before. It wasn’t like the Awakening Crystal’s energy—it was deeper, rawer, as if the very fabric of the world was bending around him.

Then, something new appeared before his eyes.

Not a glowing screen, not a system notification.

But knowledge. Information that hadn’t been there before, now flowing through his mind like instinct.

He understood things—how the world operated, how the laws of existence could be bent, twisted, rewritten.

And then, a whisper in his mind:

"Welcome, Noah Carter. You are now the sole wielder of the Forsaken Code."

The rooftop spun around him as the weight of those words sank in.

The Awakening Crystal hadn’t failed.

It simply hadn’t been capable of measuring what he had.

Noah Carter wasn’t powerless.

He had been given something far greater than anyone else.

And the world had no idea yet.